Alam was last seen at approximately 6:00 p.m. on June 25, 1998 in Groveton, Virginia. He was leaving the apartment he shared with his aunt in the 6700 block of Tower Drive at the time. Alam was driving to Union Station in Washington, D. C. for a landscaping job interview with an unknown prospective employer at the time. He has never been heard from again.

Alam was driving a red 1985 BMW with Virginia license plates numbered ZAK-9953, which was recovered on July 28, 1998 in Lanham, Maryland near Temple Hills. The vehicle was parked near the Ceder Ridge apartment complex. There was no sign of Alam at the scene.

Alam was a witness to a burglary at his home in April 1998, two months before he disappeared. He later identified Christopher Andaryl Wills as the culprit and the suspect was arrested. Alam disappeared ten days after Wills's preliminary hearing. In 1999, Wills was charged with kidnapping resulting in death in Alam's case. He represented himself and was convicted in 2001. Wills later appealed the verdict, but his appeal was denied.

Alam was a server at the Fish Market restaurant in the Old Town section of Alexandria, Virginia in 1998. He was also a student at Northern Virginia Community College.